Clare

About Clare

Clare is the medieval English form of Clara, from Latin clarus, meaning “clear,” “bright” or “famous.” Its one-syllable sound is shared with French Claire, but its five-letter spelling has its own long English history. Saint Clare of Assisi and writer and diplomat Clare Boothe Luce are two of its notable bearers.

Meaning and related names

Clare belongs to the family of the Roman name Clarus and its feminine form Clara. Clara and Clare were both used in English, with Clara becoming especially prominent in the nineteenth century. French Claire later became the more widely preferred English spelling of the one-syllable name.

Italian Chiara, German Klara and French Claire are close relatives. Clare keeps the same Latin meaning in a shorter form than Clara or Chiara. Clarette is a diminutive within the family, though Clare itself is already brief enough to use without shortening.

The spelling is also familiar from County Clare in Ireland. That place name is probably connected with Irish clár, meaning “plank” or “level surface.” It has a separate history from the Latin-rooted personal name, even though both are written Clare in English.

Saint Clare of Assisi

Saint Clare of Assisi was a friend and follower of Saint Francis in thirteenth-century Italy. Leaving a wealthy family, she began a religious life that developed into the community known as the Poor Clares.

She lived at the monastery of San Damiano for more than forty years, until her death in 1253. Her commitment to poverty was central to the life she established there. She also composed a written rule for her community and sought papal approval for it, helping give that way of life an enduring structure.

Known as Chiara in Italian, she is remembered as Clare in English. This connection gives the name a medieval religious history that has remained recognizable across different languages and spellings.

Writing and public life

Clare Boothe Luce brought the name into twentieth-century American literature and politics. Her 1936 play The Women satirized the lives of wealthy women and became a Broadway success. Before her political career, she had worked in magazine publishing, including as managing editor of Vanity Fair.

She represented Connecticut in the United States House of Representatives from 1943 to 1947. Later, she served as United States ambassador to Italy from 1953 to 1957. Her career links Clare with the stage, journalism, elected office and diplomacy, rather than with one single field.

Pronunciation and form

Clare rhymes with “air” in English. American speakers normally sound the final R, while many British speakers do not. Either way, the name has one syllable and the same usual pronunciation as Claire.

Clara adds a final vowel and another syllable. Clare instead ends firmly after the long central vowel and R sound, giving it a noticeably more compact rhythm.

American popularity

Clare was given to 510 American girls in 1998, its largest annual count. It ranked #535 with 485 births in 2000 and #924 with 283 births in 2025. It also has historical masculine use in the records, including 103 boys in 1920. These figures belong to Clare alone, separate from the much more common Claire spelling.

How popular is Clare?

In 2025, Clare ranked #924 among girls in the United States, with 283 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1880; its largest annual count was 510 in 1998. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.